Party Poker Pot-Limit Omaha High, $0.25 BB (10 handed)

MP3 ($54)
CO ($29.45)
Button ($6.65)
SB ($32.85)
BB ($37.15)
Hero ($24.65)
UTG+1 ($43.45)
UTG+2 ($48.55)
MP1 ($26)
MP2 ($33.1)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with , , , .

Hero calls $0.25, 2 folds, MP1 raises to $1.1, MP2 calls $1.10, MP3 calls $1.10, 1 fold, Button calls $1.10, SB calls $1, 1 fold, Hero calls $0.85.

b]Flop:[/b] ($6.85) , , (6 players)

Now what do you do? He max raised preflop, it likely to put him on AA or its easy for one of the many callers to have it. Do you bet here or see what happens?

I decided to check and watch the action.

SB checks, Hero checks, MP1 bets $6.55, MP2 calls $6.55, MP3 calls $6.55, Button folds, SB folds, Hero folds.

I REALLY thought he had AA and then with 3 callers, I wasn't sure what to think so it was either raise or fold in my mine. Calling would just be a waster. I took the cowards way out

Turn: ($26.50) (3 players)
MP1 bets $18.35 (All-In), MP2 folds, MP3 calls $18.35.

River: ($63.20) (2 players, 1 all-in)

Final Pot: $63.20

MP3 ended up having A2 for the smaller boat
MP1 had QQ and was pushing a big pair with an ace on the board. I would have won this pot.

How should I have played it? I had a very bad feeling here

Hi,

first: Why do limp with that hand UTG?

On the flop, I would also fold. You have one player, who's representing a set of aces. And that guy is called by two other players who could have flush and straight draws plus KK/QQ. Without the nuts on the flop, I wouldn't go out and try to protect my hand vs the straight and flush draws, so I fold.

But I also wouldn't be in that pot....


LJ

i try to get into pots cheap with JJ-AA to hit a set. When it is raised behind me, I plan on folding but there are SO MANY callers that I feel that if I hit, I have so many people that could give me their stacks. I learned this from monk but maybe I misinterpreted so blame him.

Yeah, I like to limp with most pocket pairs JJ and above for set potential, though I must admit that I like to have something else going for them, especially JJ; so I would probably fold JJ43 first to act more often than not (would have to be a very loose passive game for me to play that I think). Certainly QQ-AA and some relatively weak JJ and TT hands I tend to limp with, when the stacks are deep enough and the table contains weak players they can pay off very nicely.

That flop you should definitely lead off for a full-sized bet; if you check you are giving up on the hand. That is a good raiser's flop and he is likely to bet out with a wide variety of hands that you're beating (AJ, AK with another broadway card, A with some sort of flush draw) if checked to. However, if he leads out for the pot, you have the very hazardous situation of possibly raising on a dead hand, or perhaps having to fold the best hand. If you lead out on the flop, unless he is a goon, he is only liable to raise with AA or a hand that contains a collosal draw to which you may be about 50:50 anyway, so it's a much easier fold.

The way I tend to play second set against a good player is to bet the maximum on the flop and lay down to a raise. If I am in position and facing a bet from a solid player, if it is less than the pot I raise the maximum; however, if he's bet the pot, I will tend to raise an amount that will put pressure on a drawing hand and yet not commit me to the pot if he comes over the top; in a small pot that's usually a pot-sized raise, in a larger pot may have to be a bit less (by neccessity of the small online stacks!). I will rarely be re-raising any hand other than the current nuts with a redraw, nut flush with no board pair, or top set. Middle set only gets played for my stack if I am the aggressor from start to finish and I am sure the opponent is on a draw.

Monk
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